The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

“When Im doing something nice, randomly, it doesnt seem like a huge thing for me. Its a small thing for me, but it makes a difference and has a positive influence on someone else,” Neal Sidhu (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Arms wide open

by Jasleen Hansra, TALON Reporter April 26, 2020

Gathered around the single picnic table in the orchard in front of the RPAC, Neal Sidhu (12), dressed in a gray Harker water polo sweatshirt and black pants, cracks a joke that causes his entire group...

“What people don’t realize is that there are a lot more similarities between cultures than people may think, and getting to access those similarities and getting other people to see those similarities for themselves is my personal mission,” Tiffany Zhao (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Curiosity for culture and communication

by Shinjan Ghosh, TALON Reporter April 25, 2020

Opening the door to her car after an exhausting ride, Tiffany Zhao (12) was welcomed by the cheerful voices of children singing in unison. As the refreshing breeze blows through her hair, she steps down...

I really just live. I love to the fullest. I do everything, and I enjoy everything because you never really know what’s going to happen, Simren Gupta (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Embracing empathy

by Varsha Rammohan, Co-Managing Editor April 24, 2020

Smack! The small, black ball makes contact with the wall as Simren Gupta (12) extends her racket outward and lunges forward with her right leg. The ball hurdles back toward her with an alarming velocity,...

“Tragic things can happen so its important to enjoy the time you have here, now, and bond with the people you are close with, to live a good life while you can,” Jaimin Bhagat (12) said. 

Humans of Harker: Life in perspective

by Sarah Mohammed, Reporter April 24, 2020

Laughing with his friends on a couch in Shah Hall, Jaimin Bhagat (12) presents his “standard” demeanor: a playful, lazy smile on his face, his sparkling eyes carefree as he describes the moment he...

“You know when you love something it immediately clicks? That’s what happened for me when I started singing. Singing to me is therapeutic: when I’m not in the right mindset, I hum a tune or bop out to a song to motivate me. This feeling is amplified when I sing in a group; with our combined voices, I bring smiles to more faces than just mine,” Alex Shing (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Go green or go home

by Tiffany Chang, TALON Reporter April 22, 2020

Picture yourself sitting by a creek overshadowed with a lush canopy of leaves. Take a moment to soak in your surroundings. Close your eyes and listen to the slow trickle of the stream and the fervent fluttering...

“I want to save lives, and I think thats the base requirement for anyone who wants to go into medicine. But I also do love the sciences – I love the art of the diagnosis, how medicine is just a mixing pot of ideas. You need to take so many aspects of life, you need to understand so many parts of the human experience, of the human body to try to diagnose and try to treat a patient. Medicine is the care of people, not diseases,” Simar Bajaj (12) said.

Humans of Harker: To help, to heal

by Erica Cai, Humans of Harker Profiler April 21, 2020

You may know him as the creator of the renowned study guide compilations that, with over twenty courses, encompass four years’ worth of high school knowledge and help hundreds of students on a regular...

“I’d never expected to play volleyball at the collegiate level [or] to be on the club volleyball team that I’m on now, because when I was younger, whenever we played this team, we’d get nervous and think, ‘Wow, that’s Vision! That’s the top team!’ But now I’m playing with these girls, this is my team, and it’s so surreal,” Ashley Jazbec (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Get ahead in the game

by Lucy Ge, Winged Post Asst. News Editor April 20, 2020

A wave of quiet washes over the crowd as Ashley Jazbec (12) tosses the ball lightly in the air. Her open palm makes contact with the ball with a satisfying smack and sails over the net, wobbling slightly...

“Nothing I do is really about external approval anymore. When I do something, I do it because it makes me happy and because I genuinely enjoy doing it. When I put more effort into something, I’m more inclined to want to try harder at it in the future and then that will keep perpetuating itself and making me happy,” Sachin Shah (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Dedicated to happiness

by Aditya Singhvi, Co-Sports Editor April 20, 2020

“Dedication.” That’s how upper school debate coach Greg Achten would describe senior Sachin Shah, echoing the sentiments of his friends and teammates.  “He’s the first kid to sign up for...

“My mom always says, ‘don’t shortchange yourself’, [since] I feel like within Harker, there’s always the idea of not being good enough ... I think my mom does a really good job of encouraging me, because ... sometimes I get swamped in with the Harker culture. She tells me to focus and do what I can do, and that it’s going to be okay,” Amanda Cheung (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Contending with a purpose

by Lavanya Subramanian, TALON Reporter April 17, 2020

Amanda Cheung (12), surrounded by her sixth and seventh-grade mentees in the Introduction to Speech and Debate class, eagerly guides them through outlining a successful debate. They vigorously type their...

“Its not whether you get knocked down; its whether you get back up. Whether its football, you know, no matter what happens, stuff is going to go wrong, but you just got to keep persisting through and reach your goal, or at the restaurant, when things go wrong, you just got to figure a way around it,” Devin Keller (12) said. 

Humans of Harker: Fostering lasting bonds

by Isha Moorjani, Reporter April 16, 2020

He stands on the field, his green jersey blurring as he speeds forward to deftly catch the football, his eyes narrowing onto his goal. Upon catching it, he streaks across the field, dodging and evading...

“I want to broaden my horizons and get in touch more with the humanistic aspects of STEM because you can be the best programmer, best scientist, but at the end of the day, if you want to create change in the world, youre going to have to communicate your ideas and figure out how they fit into the mosaic of society,” Eileen Li (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Taking the leap

by Saloni Shah, Humans of Harker Editor-in-Chief April 15, 2020

Right leg in front of left. Left leg in front of right. As the chilling breeze whistles through and blows her hair past her face, she pumps her arms and breathes heavily. In. Out. In. Out. Stopping to...

“Realistically, [I just want] people to remember that I helped them and made them feel happier and just better in their everyday lives,” Jack Hansen (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Jack of hearts

by Athreya Daniel, Reporter April 15, 2020

Jack Hansen (12) stands on the tennis court, racket twirling in hand, as he waits for the serve. As the ball whizzes over the net, Jack springs into action, setting his feet and hitting a blistering cross...

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